'Devil May Cry 5': Is 15-16 Hours Too Short For A Campaign?

How long should the campaign mode be for an action-adventure video game?

Hideaki Itsuno, the director for Capcom's upcoming Devil May Cry 5, spoke to the South Korean media about his new game at a recent event. During his Q&A, Itsuno talked about the game's length, the potential for DLC and additional characters on top of Dante, Nero, and V.

Per Games Talk via Gematsu, Itsuno was asked: "There are three protagonists, so how long will the game take to complete?" Itsuno responded: "the development team took about 15 to 16 hours to clear the game."

You'd expect a decent-to-above-average skilled player will need the same amount of time. A more experienced player may be able to fly through the game in 12 hours, and a novice could need 20 hours. A similar scale exists with almost every game.

There are many high-profile games with much longer estimated completion times, such as Red Dead Redemption 2, which boasts an enormous 43.5 estimated hours. It's not fair to compare DMC 5 to RDR 2 because the latter is an open-world title that encourages exploration.

A more valid comparison is the recently released Marvel's Spider-Man. The Insomniac Games masterpiece also has an estimated 16 hours of completion time for the main story. However, if you're doing side missions, that time jumps to 23.5 hours, and if you're going for maximum completion, it hits 31 hours.

Those totals don't include Spider-Man's three DLC packs (The Heist, Silver Linings and Turf Wars). The latter two add 2.5 and 4.5 hours with side missions and maximum completion, while The Heist gives the game a 3 and 3.5-hour boost.

Will DMC 5 have DLC? That's still up in the air. Itsuno talked about potentially adding more characters if enough fans request them.

Spider-Man's approach to DLC should be the model for games within the genre that have an eye on true excellence. I can't recall the last single-player action/adventure game that has gotten more out of its core concept and branching DLC storylines.

It doesn't appear as though DMC 5 will be going that route, but there are some multiplayer options, which Spider-Man doesn't offer. There will be an online four-player multiplayer mode, but it doesn't sound like it will be a feature with tons of depth. It sounds like a mode that will be difficult to find a partner for after the game has been out for three weeks.

That's okay because the single-player campaign is the focus for this game and indeed the draw for fans. I fully expect DMC 5 to look and play beautifully, but you might want to temper your expectations if you're planning on it staying in the rotation for an extended period.